


For the People

by Tator



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Human!Niall, M/M, Werewolf!Harry, Werewolf!Zayn, human!Louis, werewolf!gemma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-21
Updated: 2014-01-21
Packaged: 2018-01-09 13:35:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,556
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1146610
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tator/pseuds/Tator
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He wasn’t supposed to be here, he thought sourly. This wasn’t his fault, why must he be the one punished? It was for the people, he had to remind himself. For the people, for the people, for the people.</p>
            </blockquote>





	For the People

**Author's Note:**

> [Kaya99](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Kaya99/pseuds/Kaya99) wrote a Russian translation that can be found on [ficbook.net](https://ficbook.net/readfic/5066515) so go check it out if you like :))

The wind hit the boy with a bitter chill as the moon crept higher in the sky. He cursed almost silently before pulling the many layers he had on closer to his body. The cold nights of England seemed to become more chilling when you weren’t wrapped tightly in blankets by the fire. If it wasn’t for the piercing howls in the air every couple of minutes, he would have forgotten why he was here. The chill almost driving him to forget like he so strongly desired. 

He wasn’t supposed to be here, he thought sourly. This wasn’t his fault, why must he be the one punished? It was for the people, he had to remind himself. For the people, for the people, for the people. It was like an endless mantra inside his head, never ending, but quickly growing tiresome. 

Another howl shoot through the air, near his left, and he damned all The Council to hell before rushing away from the sound. They decided that he would be the one to go through with the ceremony. He was the best option. They were wrong, so wrong. He wasn’t the best option. He was going to screw this up, and the village would be destroyed before The Council learned their deadly mistake. 

A twig snapped, and he stopped. This was it he thought. He turned to look at the culprit behind him. It was a blonde boy, not much younger than him. He was walking towards him with a curious look, his blue eyes questioning as his head tilted slightly. He was easy to pick out. His skin practically glowed in the light of the full moon. 

“Are you in the wrong place?” The blonde asked. His Irish brogue pierced through the silent forest, and the other tried not to flinch at the sudden sound. 

“Uh,” the boy responded. “No?” He looked around, suddenly hoping he wasn’t. He was in the right place. He was doing what he was supposed to, wasn’t he? 

“You’re the one they sent?” The boy’s head tilted the other way. 

“Yes,” he swallowed thickly. “Are you . . . are you-“ His question trailed off before he had the chance to think of its ending. 

“The alpha? No,” the blonde boy laughed, as if there was a joke that only he understood. “I’m Niall.” 

“Why are you here?” He asked. 

“You didn’t tell me your name,” Niall pointed out. 

The boy shook his head. “You didn’t answer my question.” 

“It’s the full moon.” He stated as if that was explanation enough. The human in front of him blinked before muttering something under his breath that didn’t make sense even to him. “What’s your name?” 

“You don’t look like a wolf.” The boy stated easily, as if he didn’t hear the question. 

“I’m not,” Niall replied. “My mate is.” 

“Mate?” The boy repeated. “Gods, you couldn’t even be sixteen.” 

“You don’t look much older,” Niall pointed out. 

“I’m not,” he muttered. 

“Oh,” Niall said. There was a moment of silence as he watched the boy in front of him, taking in his defensive stance and worried gaze. “You’re not happy to be here.” The statement rolled off his tongue as he once again tilted his head. 

“It’s for the people.” Louis recited from the chant in his head. 

“The Council forced you to do this,” Niall’s tone seemed to get sharper. Louis snapped his gaze back up to see a fire under the boy’s eyes. “You didn’t have a choice. The alpha will not be happy about this.” 

“Then he will not know,” the boy exclaimed hurriedly. “I was not forced. The Council gave me a choice. Be with the alpha or live in eternal guilt as the village is picked off one by one.” 

“The wolves wouldn’t hurt the village. They never have.” Niall quickly argued. 

“That doesn’t mean they’re protecting it either!” The boy countered louder than he hoped. “The winter is just as vicious as the predators in it.” 

There was another moment of silence. He felt like a rat being watched by a cat, but then he dismissed the thought from his brain. If this other human was the cat, what were the wolves? He nearly shuddered at the thought. “You’re loyal,” Niall concluded. “The Council picked well.” 

The boy shook his head as dreadful thoughts about The Council struck out in his head. He didn’t have to be here. He could have said no, find another to do your dirty work, but he didn’t have the heart. It was for the people, the people, the people, he repeated. 

Another howl shot through the air, and the boy closed his eyes tightly, gripping onto his hair. It was close, behind the blonde, Niall. He didn’t have much time left. “You shouldn’t be here when he finds me.” He said to the blonde. 

“That wasn’t him,” he quickly said. “No, that was for me.” 

“You?” The boy pondered. 

He nodded his head. “The full moon run is a tradition for all mated pairs, not just the alpha.” 

“You can tell which is your wolf?” The boy asked. 

“It isn’t difficult-“ The blonde was suddenly struck down by a moving shadow approaching from the brush. The boy immediately wanted to aid Niall, help him somehow, even though he was merely human. The shadow became clearer as Louis approached it slowly. It didn’t seem to be hurting the Irish lad beneath him, and he didn’t want to startle it. His mind caught up to him after a moment, and he made out the figure of a wolf lurking over the other, a dark, large wolf. 

Niall let out a loud laugh, throwing his head back. Baring his throat, the boy thought bitterly. Submission, he added a moment later. “You got me. You got me. Now get off, you big brut.” Niall chuckled. 

The boy watched as the dark, four legged predator turned into a man sitting atop his companion. This man was much more of what the boy expected a wolf to look, strong, mysterious, _deadly_. “Why?” The accent was from somewhere to the south, heavy as it was. 

“You’ll scare the alpha bait off, and Harry won’t like that.” Niall mocked, sitting up. A pair of golden eyes flicked to the boy standing not five meters away. They watched as the boy closed in on himself, shoulders rounding, head slinking down, knees bending. He looked like a rabbit ready to bolt from his known demise. The eyes went back to the one underneath him before he whispered, “too late.” Niall laughed again before looking back at him. “Don’t worry. He wouldn’t hurt a fly.” He patted the wolf’s chest lightly as a playful growl escaped the other’s throat. 

A howl caught threw the night, and the boy had to clench his eyes shut to keep from flinching too hard. The howl sounded close. It was crisp in the night, and he knew in that moment it was the one for him. He opened his eyes slowly to see the pair watching him closely. His daze made it difficult to say farewell before he bolted further into the forest. He didn’t have much time. He only hoped it was his imagination playing tricks on him when he heard feet hitting the ground behind him. It was impossible to hear anything over the pounding of his own heart. 

He wouldn’t be able to run much further. The air in his lungs was slowly escaping while the beating in his ears increased. 

The stop he attempted was too sudden as he slid behind a tree. An ache shot through his back reminding him this was all too real.

It only took a moment or two after that, only a moment of peace before he could hear a deep snarl that shuddered through his chest. His eyes squeezed shut as he chanted in his head. For the people. For the people. He scrambled onto his feet as he faced what was his ultimate death. It was larger than the one with Niall, but lighter in color. Its eyes were a deep red, but its teeth were a pearly white. For the people. For the people. He reminded as squeezed his eyes close again. 

This time when he opened them there was a man in the place of the beast. The boy could tell this man was taller than him, broader, too. His skin was reminded him of sheep with its whiteness, but there were lines of black and color around his arms and chest. The eyes were just as red in this state, but they faded into a green as his face stayed sharp. This was the alpha, he figured. 

“What do they call you?” His voice was deep and gravelly, but terrifying to the boy in front of him. The boy watched as he took efficient steps towards him as he scrambled closer to the tree behind him. The silence seemed to agitate the wolf as he twisted his hand into the thick fabric near the boy’s collar. He quickly gripped the warm skin only to be met with a snarl, which made him grip onto the wrist tighter, digging in his nails. “I asked you a question.” He spat out through gritted teeth. 

“L-L,” The boy squeezed his eye lids together, swallowing the thick lump of fear in his throat. For the people. “Louis,” he finished. 

“You’re the one they sent?” He raised an eyebrow as his eyes narrowed. 

Louis looked around the floor of the forest, eyes darting around. “Yes,” he replied. 

“You’re weak,” the wolf scoffed releasing his hold on Louis’ clothing. 

“Yes,” Louis repeated, eyes still darting around by the wolf’s feet. He tried to stop every muscle in his body from tensing more than they were. His nails dug into the tree behind him. The bark poking the skin as it clumped underneath them. 

“How old are you?” The wolf asked. 

Louis knew better than to wait this time. “Seventeen,” he muttered. 

“Speak up.” The wolf demanded as his growl vibrated in Louis’ ribs. 

“Like you cannot hear me?” Louis exclaimed, eyes snapping up to quickly looking into the wolf’s eyes that were wide with shock at his outburst. He watched as the red slowly bled into them. The boy knew he angered the beast, and his eyes immediately scanned the forest floor again after being shut for a few moments. For the people. For the people. 

He could feel the wolf’s eyes on him, but he didn’t look up again. “Follow me.” He heard and watched as the feet in his view turned to go the other way. Louis scurried after him. 

“You never told me what’s happening.” He mumbled, watching the ground in front of him. “Or your name,” he added after a second of thought. 

“Harry,” came the gruff reply. “And, we’re going to the camp.” 

Louis only nodded, not knowing if Harry would see him or not. He couldn’t see much of anything through his human eyes, but they were just that, human. There was no doubt that the wolf was much more capable than he was, at many things. 

He tried to keep up with the other man’s quick pace, but his shorter legs could only go so quick. And with his lack of eye sight, he stumbled often on roots and holes in the ground. Louis watched as the moon drifted higher in the night sky as they walked. It was the same moon, he thought, but it seemed to seal his fate in a different way tonight. Was it always like this? The moon? Giving to those underneath it, but taking when it deemed fit. Louis shook his head. It was only the moon, he reminded himself. Just like it was only one life The Council sacrificed to the wolves. It was only a shame it was his. 

It took a while to hear the murmur of voices and the crackles of fire. It took longer to actually see it. Louis had never seen the wolves before, only ever heard of them. Tonight he was the first time, but he expected something different. He didn’t think there would be so many of them. They were all running around the fires between tents. Some appeared as humans, while others were wolves. 

Louis watched in amazement as people talked and laughed around him. Each seemed so happy. He thought about what would be happening back home. The families would be burrowed under pelts and blankets, fearing every sound in the night, fearing the monsters in the dark. 

He flinched when he felt a hand on his back, quickly jumping away from the source. Harry peered at him with a curious gaze as Louis looked at him as his eyes shut tightly. “This way,” Harry pointed, leaving his eyes on the boy. Louis nodded but didn’t bother to say anything. 

He flowed the alpha to what he assumed was his tent, watching as the alpha peered at him through the corner of his eye every few seconds. Louis never met them though. He feared the red that would be spotting the green. Louis tried to remember if he knew anyone back home with green eyes, but he couldn’t place anyone. Maybe there weren’t any, he mused. Maybe this is a mark of a wolf, but then he shook it off. He heard of people with green eyes. He was just being over dramatic. 

“This is where we’ll be staying.” Harry stated easily. Louis watched as the other boy threw himself down onto the fur that lined the ground. Everything this man did seemed predatory. From the way he walked to the way he sat, it all just screamed un-human in the back of Louis’ mind. “You can sit,” Harry supplied unamused. Louis wanted to say something sarcastic. _I suppose I can._ But, he also thought that wouldn’t be very appropriate for the situation, so he just sat down as far away from the creature as he could. 

Harry watched the boy carefully. Every twitch, every sharp intake of breath that later puffed out quickly he saw. He hadn’t realized he looked like he was stalking his prey, but then again, Louis was something of the sort right now, wasn’t he? He was only there to really do Harry’s bidding. Neither one came into this thinking it would be a loving relationship with hearts in their eyes and a flutter in their stomach. But, damn, Harry had at least thought the person they sent wouldn’t be completely terrified of him. Well, at least he’s pretty. 

“Why did The Council pick you?” Harry blurted out before he could really help it. Louis looked up quickly before his eyes settled back down to his hands in his lap. He shrugged but otherwise didn’t say anything. Harry almost let a growl slip out but realized that probably wouldn’t help the situation right know. “Can you speak?” 

“Yes,” Louis supplied under his breath. If he were at home right now, where he belonged, he wouldn’t let this person walk all over him. But, he wasn’t home, and this person wasn’t just a person. He was the alpha of a wolf pack. 

“Then why don’t you?” Harry sneered slightly. 

“I am now, aren’t I?” Louis shot a quick glare up at the wolf only to see an amused face instead of an angered one like he thought he would have. This time his eyes didn’t slip down to his lap as quick. 

“So you only speak when you’re annoyed? I suppose I’ll have to get on your nerves often then.” Harry mused, scooting closer to the boy in front of him. Louis couldn’t help but cringe slightly, but he didn’t move away. Just because the wolf seems to want to get on Louis’ nerves doesn’t mean he wants to get on the wolf’s. 

Harry then just peered at the boy carefully. His head tilted one way to then go the other. It reminded Louis of a dog quite a bit, but then again, it should, shouldn’t it? Louis then got to have a good look at the creature he was going to spend the rest of his days with. He didn’t look that intimidating up close. His eyes didn’t seem as cold in the torch’s light. His skin didn’t seem to be made out of steel when Louis could see the pores filtering his face. 

“Harry!” A voice shrieked from the other side of the tent. Louis jumped up and away from the noise before he had to close his eyes reciting his mantra over and over again. Harry wanted to laugh at the little human, but thought it wouldn’t be very appropriate. He walked over to the entrance to let his sister come in. “He’s adorable,” was the first thing that came out of her mouth when she laid eyes on the boy. 

Louis stared carefully at the girl from his safe corner away. She looked a lot like Harry except her hair was maybe lighter. He couldn’t really tell in this light nor did he really care all that much. “His name is Louis,” Harry stated as he watched the interaction between the two. “This is Gemma, my sister.” 

“Nice to meet you, Louis,” Gemma said. “I’m his sister, like he said, and I also happen to be the better of the two. So you can always come to me.” She smiled a sweet, warm smile that would make even the most anxious of children comfortable with the shewolf. However, Louis was much worse than an anxious child. He watched her carefully but otherwise didn’t say anything. Her smile faltered after a second, and she shot a concerned look over at her brother. “Harry, dear, may I have a word?” 

Harry looked over at the frail human before nodding, and they both left the tent, stepping just outside. “I know what you’re going to say,” Harry sighed before his sister even started the speech forming in her mind. 

“He is terrified, Harry. I can smell the fear from out here. What did you do to the poor thing?” She ranted. 

“I didn’t do anything,” he countered. She shot him a look. “Okay, so I might have been a little harsh, but I mean this isn’t exactly what I thought this would be like, the whole getting mated thing. I thought it would end out more like Zayn and Niall.” 

“Harry, nothing is going to be like Zayn and Niall’s mating. That was and is a fairy tale. If you thought a forced mating was going to be like that, then there really is more hair than brain, isn’t there?” Gemma put on a sarcastic smile, patting her brother’s shoulder with no real affection. 

Harry rolled his eyes at her. “Obviously I didn’t think it was going to go that well, but it would have been nice if he wasn’t so scared of me.” 

“Well can you blame him?” She scoffed. 

“What does that me?” He bit back with a small snarl. 

It was her turn to roll her eyes at him. “You’re the alpha of our lovely pack here. Not only do you happen to be one of the youngest alphas in our history, but you also happen to have a bit of a, how you say, infamous reputation.” 

“Why don’t you go do something useful?” Harry narrowed his eyes at her. He knew she was right, but he didn’t want to admit it. This was all supposed to be simple. The Council was supposed to pick someone suitable. They agreed on someone strong enough to deal other wolves, smart enough to know when they were being fooled, compassionate enough to deal with the pack, and attractive enough for him to want to keep the human around. This boy certainly had the looks, but he couldn’t account for the rest. “There’s a group hunt happening later tonight because of the run. I’ll be sure to show my mate around, nicely, if you would provide food as a bribe.” 

“On it, boss,” she saluted before she quickly left. Harry sighed but went back inside the tent anyways. 

The boy, Louis he reminded himself, was looking around nervously when he stepped back into his sights. He saw the boy look back up at him quickly. They locked eyes for a moment, and Harry almost thought the human would hold the contact. He was sadly disappointed though. The little one looked away far too quickly for anything interesting to come out of it. Harry did note that his eyes were a lovely shade of blue though. He wouldn’t mind looking into that more. 

“I don’t think you’re ready enough to meet the rest of the pack just quite yet, but it’ll have to be soon. They’re all interested in meeting you,” Harry stated still standing at the entrance to the tent. He saw Louis nod, but all he could focus on was the fact that the little human’s eyes kept bugging around the room in ever wonderment or fear. The alpha thought that maybe it was a bit of both. “You can speak, you know. I don’t bite. Well, not on the first night at least.” Harry thought it was funny. Louis didn’t. 

Louis shuddered at the thought of being bitten, by a human or not. For the people, he reminded himself. This was all going to help someone, his family, his friends. He had to stay strong for them. “When do we leave camp?” He decided to ask. The wolf obviously wanted to talk, so he thought he could give him that. 

Harry was slightly shocked that the human said anything at all. He must admit he didn’t think the boy would say anything to him for at least another few days. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad. “We leave for the Moon’s Rise in two days’ time. There we will meet with some other packs of the North. They are all interested in this pairing and wish to make a formal greeting to the both of us to recognize you as my mate.” 

“When will we be back to this area?” Louis asked before he could really stop himself. It was hard enough leaving home. He just wanted to know how long he really had to be gone. 

Harry cocked his head slightly to the left. Humans were interesting he decided. “We should be back before the next winter. The treaty has us obligated to be back by the first snow fall.” Louis nodded his head. Right, he thought, the treaty. That was the only reason he was really here: a treaty that was supposed to protect his people throughout the harsh winters. 

Louis stayed silent then. The wolf continued to look over at him with a somewhat curious expression. Neither seemed to know what to do with each other because this wasn’t exactly anyone’s expertise. Harry wanted to talk to the boy, wanted to get to know the person he was going to be spending the rest of his life with. Louis on the other hand just wanted to run. He wanted the itching to stop from underneath his skin. It burned and he just wanted to get out of this tent, out of this pack, out of the woods. All he really wanted was to go home. 

“Which village are you from?” Harry asked. 

Louis looked up quickly from where he was staring at his hands. “Um, Doncaster. I’m from Doncaster.” 

“Which one is that?” Harry continued. 

“The one in the north east of the valley. It’s a few leagues away from the west entrance to the woods in the mountains. You might have seen it.” Louis mumbled. Home was a fond place for him. He didn’t want the memories tainted with the words of those that were taking it from him. 

“Oh,” the wolf replied. “I think I might have seen it before on patrol of the west flanks. It’s a cozy little village. Your council man is . . .”

“Mark,” Louis supplied. 

“Right, Mark of Doncaster. He seemed . . . pleasant,” Harry added. He had met the man before, but no one from the Council stuck in his mind for very long. The only time he really paid attention during the meetings he had with the human Council of the west was when the treaty was actually written up. Protection for a human mate. That’s what he really remembered. 

“I never liked him very much,” Louis mumbled. 

Harry perked up with that. This might actually start a conversation, he mused. A conversation was always good when it came to talking to your mate. “Why?” He asked. 

“Um,” Louis looked back up at him not really expecting for this conversation to go anywhere. He honestly thought he would have nothing to ever really talk about with the wolf. “He never really listened to the people very much. He just kind of did what was best for him. The first time the village learned about the possibility of this, uh, match was when he came to collect a couple of us for inspection.” 

“Oh, well then he doesn’t seem very pleasant at all,” Harry said taking back his previous statement. Louis nodded, and they suddenly returned to their previous silence. Harry still wanted to try of course. He would be willing to try anything to get this tiny human to open up to him. He just didn’t know how. 

“I meet a couple in the forest earlier. A blonde boy and a wolf,” Louis said. Harry perked up at the idea of another conversation, one that he would actually know what to talk about. 

Harry nodded with a smile. “It was probably Niall and Zayn. They’ve been mated for a year or two now I think, but they still like to do the mate run every full moon.”

“Niall doesn’t look that old,” Louis commented. 

“Oh, he’s not,” Harry agreed. “We were over the West Sea for a few days to talk to a fellow pack about territories. Zayn was sixteen that summer. He took one look at this boy who only had 14 and was gone for him. Now he’s eighteen, and Niall is sixteen.” 

“They’re pretty young,” Louis said surprised. 

“They’re some of the youngest I’ve met, but when my grandfather was alpha of the pack, most would mate off before their fifteenth summer. It just made more sense back then,” Harry shrugged. 

“How many summers have you seen?” Louis asked. 

“Eighteen last winter,” Harry replied. 

Louis shook his head. “Back at the village, if you were married before you had reached adulthood they would call you a wanton in front of your mother. It seems normal here.” 

“Humans are different than wolves,” Harry nodded. 

That night when Louis lied awake next to the wolf with his skin feeling to hot and his organs feeling to stretched he looked over at the person he was sworn away to. He wasn’t that scary, Louis thought. He was just like anyone else back at the village his age. He wanted to seem tough, but in reality he just was a stuffed bear. 

That night Louis had to remind himself it was for the people when Harry’s arm ended up thrown across his torso, but the next morning the thought didn’t enter his mind.

**Author's Note:**

> It just kind of ends I realize, but that was somewhat on purpose and somewhat I couldn't think of anything else. Let me know if you want anymore parts to it.


End file.
